So What'll It Be, Dashie?
by Arbarano
Summary: Every week or so, Rarity gathers all of her friends for a little get-together at her boutique. Or at a cafe. Or in Sugarcube Corner. Anywhere that serves tea or tea can be brought in. And every time, as soon as their conversation steers towards that most intimate of topics, Rainbow Dash falls silent.
1. Chapter 1

Dash bit back her sigh, and along with it the urge to just flare her wings and take off. Instead, she kept staring out the window and into the cool, blue sky. It called back to her, teasing her with its complete lack of clouds, mocking her with the epic thermals it was giving to the _other_ pegasi that were floating around it and not using those things _properly_, and, most of all, reminding her that this was supposed to be her day off from weather patrol.

But no.

Of course, Rarity just _had_ to pick _today_ to invite them all together for a little chat over biscuits and… _ugh_. She really didn't want to think about what was in those cups.

"Oh, Applejack," crowed Rarity, pausing to take another sip of her poison. "I haven't told you what your _darling_ brother did last night!"

AJ glared at her, and Dash had a sudden suspicion that she'd seen _that_ look before. From between splintered branches, probably. "If it's anythin' like the last time you said that, Rare, then _I _don't wanna' hear it."

"Oh! Oh, no, _nothing_ like that, Applejack. You know how _sorry_ I am for what I said last time, don't you?"

"Yeah, I know that."

"Thank you, Applejack." A lazy smile eased itself across Rarity's muzzle. "Still, you must understand, darling, your brother is… _oh_, those _hooves_…" Her eyes glazed over, and she took a moment to snuggle into her own forelegs.

Dash propped her head up against a fore-hoof, and finally let her sigh pop out. Still trying to bore a hole through the glass with her eyes, she spotted a lone cloud drifting just above the rooftops. It was a small, flat little thing, but it looked the perfect size for one of her take-offs.

Yeah. She'd swoop straight down off it and through the rows of houses, wowing anypony brave enough to not dive out of the way and cower like a little foal with her Super Speed Strut. Then she could shoot right back up to where her breath misted and the chills tingled her wings, just so she could come all the way back again and let her hooves graze the rooftops for her Peregrine Pulse.

Then, if she didn't break anything this time, the whole _town_ would go _wild_! She'd look around, and be met with ponies as far as she could see, all of them roaring and cheering her name. Foals would be leaping everywhere, their faces cracking into adorable grins the instant they caught sight of her. The Mayor would be there too, standing on a balcony, declaring that this day forever be known as Rainbow Dash Day!

Aw _yeah_!

"Um… Rarity…"

Aw… no.

The sea of ponies poofed out of existence. So did all of those adoring—_not. adorable._—foals, and The Mayor, and those banners that were just being unfurled. Instead, she found herself staring at Fluttershy, who looked like she was trying her hoof at Pinkie's clown costume. If a clown were to ever hide from their audience behind their mane. Or shrink away into a little ball, their hooves curling up against their chest. Or leave behind the massive rainbow wig.

She'd gotten the red splotches on her cheeks right, though.

"Oh… Fluttershy…" Rarity slapped a hoof over her mouth, her eyes welling up. "I-I apologise… I shouldn't have been talking about something so… so _private_. That was most unladylike of me…"

"I'll say…"

They all turned to look at Applejack, who glared at Rarity as a greenish tinge spread across her cheeks. The tears in Rarity's eyes vanished as they narrowed, and her lips curled into a smirk.

"Well, I would say that your imagination's to blame there, Applejack—"

"Just get to the part 'bout last night, Rarity."

Rarity pouted. "Fine, Applejack." In an instant, she cracked into another warm smile. "It was after I finished those designs for Ruby Ring. I had _just_ put the last of those little silk strips that she'd requested on the pleats, when who should appear at my door but my handsome prince!"

Dash looked over to where Rarity had thrown her hoof out in one of her dramatic flourishes. And ponies said that _she_ took things too far! Her eyes quickly landed on the frilly, lacy mess of pink, white and more pink that she'd sooner rip all her feathers out than be caught wearing.

"… He gave me the most _marvellous_ bouquet…"

Dash huffed. Rarity had already figured out the frilliest, most _girly_ way to earn a living, and yet she'd managed to find a way to make it even more embarrassing to even _look_ at!

"… And then he… _regarded_ me with those gentle eyes…"

Sure, it wasn't like Dash particularly _minded_ Rarity designing her clothes. Making money was making money. And she had to admit that some of Rarity's designs did look kind of cool. Especially that blue suit in the corner, tucked behind the mass of pink and purple and white.

Still, would it kill her to make stuff a little less… sickly-sweet?

"… And you should have seen the spread he laid out for us! There were these _divine_ little sandwiches, and of course he'd filled them with all of my _favourite_ things, and for dessert he produced a lovely apple crumble…"

"Actually, Rares, I _did_ see it."

"Oh?"

"I was the one who helped him with it."

"… Applejack… I… _thank you_…"

Wait.

Blue suit?

Could it _be_?

Could it be an order from one of the most _amazing_ flyers that Equestria had ever known?

It… _could_. No matter how far she leaned back, or how she twisted her head, she couldn't quite get a good enough look at anything other than the muzzle to say yes or no. Even so, those lightning bolts _did_ look very familiar…

"… Aw, shucks, Rarity. S'all right. Besides, I'm gettin' a fair amount o'practice whenever Soarin' stays over." She chuckled. "Poor guy. Might end up needin' a new flight suit 'cause of me…"

Dash scowled. The papers had just _lapped_ that one up when it broke; city-slicking Wonderbolt finds his sweetheart out in the sticks. And then when _that_ become old news, not a single picture of Soarin' in the news was complete without him about to plant his maw in _some_ kind of dessert. Sometimes they'd even find the nerve to pack in close-up of the guy's gut.

And it looked like he'd _exhaled_ for Celestia's sake!

He was a _Wonderbolt_! Those guys spent _hours_ every single day soaring through the skies and throwing themselves through training courses that had even made _her_ eyes water the first time she looked at them. A little, anyway. There was no _way_ kicking back for a few days out on Sweet Apple Acres was going to make him 'let himself go', as those _hacks_ had put it. She'd even seen him help AJ with the harvest.

"Oh, Rares… I know it's not like me to go all gaga over anypony, but he's just so _Celestia-durn_ adorable! I mean it! Why, just the other evening he offered t'help me with the rest of my work, even when it was his last night away from all that training he does. An' he _really_ put his all into it, too. 'Course, he didn' 'xactly keep up with me, but he screwed up his face an' really _tried_.

"I've… None of m'other coltfriends ever helped out like he did… And then when we were done, we just kinda' laid there next t'each other, and he put his hooves aroun' me…"

Besides… How _could_ they criticise one of Equestria's heroes? When the guy was standing at the top of a huge platform, the weight of the crowd on his shoulders, their roars almost shaking him off the edge, and a massively-complex and exhausting routine just a few seconds ahead of him, the last thing he needed was to be pressured about his eating. She knew that, why didn't _they_?

"Dash, I can't thank you enough for introducin' me to him."

Not that top athletes should let the pressure get to them. No. Not that she did, either.

"Dash?"

But still…

"Dash?!"

"Wha'?"

Dash shook her head, and found herself staring at Applejack, who looked back at her with a neat little smile. "Nice of you t'join us again, Dash." She chuckled, shaking her head for a second. "I was just tryin' to thank you for telling' Soarin' about me… I can't tell you how happy he makes me…"

Applejack's smile spread and made itself a comfortable home with a sigh. Only then did Dash see just how wet and shiny her eyes looked.

She snorted, her own mouth stretching into a smirk. "Ah, it's nothing, AJ. Just as long as you," she pointed a hoof at AJ, "remember to count me in on those 'family and friend' tickets."

Applejack chuckled. "Sure thing, Dash."

Dash let her huge grin off its leash, but held back on the squeal. _That_ was only for when nopony was looking and she had just found out there was a new Daring Do book and she couldn't handle the sheer awesomeness of it. Or for when the Wonderbolts pulled off one of their secret training moves in the valley just on the other side of Whitetail Wood and they didn't know she had been taking a nap beneath them. Or for—

Ah, screw it. She was going to see the _Wonderbolts_ in a private, air-conditioned booth on plush seats with waiters bringing her all the hay fries she could eat! She could squeal if she wanted!

And clop her hooves together loud enough to get everypony staring at her, too.

"Rainbow…" said Twilight, sharing a look with Rarity.

"Yeah?"

Sheesh! Since when was her mouth so dry? Dash sighed. It must have been from all those biscuits that she'd eaten earlier. Why couldn't those come with a warning for 'Will Suck Out All Moisture' rather than just 'High Fat'? Those were just for lazy ponies who never exercised.

As Dash stared at the only liquid—or sludge—nearby, sitting in that flowery little cup with the handle she was never going to get her hoof through, steam coiling off the top of it.

She shuddered.

"Dash… darling…"

"Yup?"

Thinking about it, that… _gunk_ she'd tried over at Twilight's _did_ have its own warning label on it. Well, she'd been told a warning, anyway. About it being a medicine, from Zecora, and being used to treat Twilight's inability to unload her—

"We don't want to intrude, you understand, but… well… _you've_ never brought up any of your relationships."

"Yeah? So?"

She eyed the cup. She'd already seen Rarity heap a couple of spoons of sugar into it, so it was hardly going to taste bad. Plus Pinkie'd already downed at _least_ a couple of these, and that pony practically _lived_ on sweets. And hot sauce.

"Well… _is_ there anything like that in your life?"

"Nope."

What was she waiting for again? She grabbed the cup with both hooves.

"No? You mean… you don't have a coltfriend—_or fillyfriend,_" she added, glancing at Twilight, "whom you've kept hidden from us? Or somepony you gaze at from afar, hoping that you'll catch their eye? Or an ex whose memories you'd rather forget?"

Dash drained the last drops from her cup, smacking her lips together. Not bad. Maybe not something she'd have too often, especially with that fuzzy feeling it left in her mouth, but all right, she supposed. Could probably have been a little sweeter, though.

She set the cup back on it's dainty little saucer with a chink, and looked Rarity right in those wide, quivering eyes.

She shrugged. "Nope."


	2. Chapter 2

Those big eyes of Rarity's stayed on Dash for so long she could practically feel them boring into her chest. It would definitely explain why everything around her middle suddenly felt so tight.

Did they _all have_ to stare at her like that?

"You _haven't_?!"

That loosened everything up again. At least, it made everypony else take their eyes off Dash and lay them squarely on Rarity, as she huffed and she shook her hoof so hard she came close to ruining her _precious_ hooficure on the table.

Rainbow smirked, and finally let out the breath she'd _meant_ to hold.

And immediately grimaced. It _stank_!

She glared at that… that _cup_. It was that tea! It had tricked her! Sure, it had acted all innocent and sweet with its sugar and the cake next to it and those _disgustingly_ pink flowers on the cup, but she _knew _better. Or she should have, anyway.

Twilight sighed, slumping her shoulders. "Rarity…"

"Oh no. No. This simply _won't_ do…"

Dash put raised a hoof to her mouth and puffed against it.

Actually, maybe it wasn't that. Those were _definitely_ peppers from last night's pizza she could smell. Had she brushed her teeth lately?

She shrugged. Nothing one of those creamy biscuits that she'd smiled a _little_ too hard at the first time she saw them couldn't fix!

"Rarity."

"Now, stay calm, Rarity. You know what to do…"

Grinning, Dash reached out a hoof and aimed it squarely at the little plate in the centre of the table.

Only to see the last one disappear into Pinkie's gaping mouth out of the corner of her eye. Dash's grin collapsed into a scowl. Pinkie'd already taken at least half a _dozen_ of those things, plus there was that empty packet of popcorn next to her cup.

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. Where did she even _get_ those things, anyway? And why couldn't she share?

"… although that Gryphon… oh, what was her name… Gilda! Yes, she might fit the bill, too…"

Wait.

G?

Before she could stop them, all sorts of images flew before Dash's eyes. Of a Gilda's claw bumping against her hoof after she _nailed_ her first attempt at a loop-the-loop that she hadn't been distracted for by a cloud or the wind. Of Gilda punching the air and then doing the same to her shoulder after she showed off her cutie-mark. Of Gilda's beak stretched into the biggest smile that she'd ever seen on it, while they threw up those silly little black hats they wore for graduation.

Of Gilda, something _gross_ dribbling out of her nose, narrowing bloodshot eyes at her. Of Gilda disappearing behind a door before Dash could get her hoof in…

Something coiled and tightened in Dash's gut, squeezing a sigh out of her. Maybe it was time for another trip to Cloudsdale.

"_Rarity!_"

Dash looked over at Twilight, and so did everypony else. Especially Rarity, although she could also see that _her_ eyes were focussed on the little cloud of red sparkles hovering around Twilight's horn.

"This _isn't_ something that needs to be fixed, Rarity."

Dash shivered. That was fine, though. She wasn't _scared_. No _way_. She was the most _awesome_ pegasus in Equestria—outside the Wonderbolts—and the only one ever to brave the other side of the sound barrier.

But even the most awesome of pegasi was allowed to feel a little _nervous_ when their friend had the power to level Canterlot in her horn. Particularly when she was pointing it _right at them_.

Dash gulped.

And then let out a _deep breath and not a sigh_ when those sparkles vanished. "Rainbow," began Twilight, "are you saying that you've _never _had _any_ desire to be intimate with somepony?"

Dash cocked her head. "What?"

"Might wanna' bring it down a notch, Twi," said AJ, chuckling.

They both scowled at her, and Dash noticed Fluttershy had disappeared behind her mane again. Even so, she could still see her eyes shining brighter than—

Oh _no_.

Rainbow looked away, her lips twitching for just a second. It was better than what had happened the last time, when she'd gotten stuck just staring into those big, wet eyes… Like a pair of giant holes just sucking out anything happy…

She shuddered. Maybe not _that_…

"Fine, Applejack. Dash?"

Her eyes flicked back to Twilight, whose normal smile had returned. "What I meant was 'Have you ever _wanted_ a relationship with anypony?'"

Rainbow snorted, shaking her head. "No… How many times do I have to say that?"

Twilight's smile grew. "Not anymore!"

Dash leaned back into her chair, letting her eyes scour the table for _anything_. She thrust her lips into what would probably be a pout. If Rarity were doing it, anyway.

"… But _Twilight_…"

It was only then that she remembered where that final biscuit was. There was still a slice of cake, though…

"… It's perfectly normal for a pony to not want a relationship, Rarity. There's a whole book devoted to this in the library, and, while rare, it's not unknown for ponies to eschew this sort of thing completely."

"Oh, I understand, darling. I was just… _curious_, that's all…"

Rainbow licked at her hoof, letting a smile loose as she swept up the last crumbs of cake. She couldn't help it; it just came with eating a cake that Pinkie had made. Probably something to do with the amount of sugar and chocolate she loaded them with, Dash supposed, her lips curling.

"So does anypony wanna' hear about the party I threw last night?"

A familiar itch spread through her wings, and Dash looked back through the window. The sun had moved a little across the sky by now. Too far for those updrafts she'd been waiting _three whole days_ to get a chance on to have anything near their top output left. A couple of pegasi lay on the nearest one, probably laughing and joking about all the fun _they'd_ had just _hovering_ on them!

"… Um… no offence, Pinkie, but I think I need to get going soon. Cheerilee's bringing her class to the library for their weekly trip."

They'd moved her cloud, too. That perfect little one just _ripe_ for a _real_ stunt flier to launch from it. She frowned, letting her head fall onto her waiting hoof.

"Although, you could tell me this afternoon, Pinkie. I should have some time after I finish off Dew Drop's ensemble…"

Although… they _had_ left another cloud hanging around near town hall.

A smile crept onto her lips. It was bigger, and a lot greyer than the one she'd seen earlier, so it probably wouldn't take all her energy when she took off, but if she could split it into smaller pieces…

"… Okie dokie lokie, Rarity!"

"Although, Twilight… Will Cheerilee be… _spending the night_ with you, again?"

Then they'd make the _perfect_ Wingmare's Weave training route!

Yeah! If she lined it up right this time, right by one of the roads into town, then she could just use that for a run-up. She'd gallop towards those silent-but-deadly balls, her eyes on them but drawing the eyes of everypony to her. A little jump later and she'd be blasting towards them so fast she'd be a blur, ready to zip between through her course with her wings _just_ missing the clouds. The ponies would _love_ it!

But she'd have to be careful to actually _miss_ the clouds, this time. She sighed. It hadn't been quite so hot to stand there, her wings black from all the lightning, trying to coax some teary-eyed little filly out from under a park bench…

"… Oh, _Rarity_… But yes, she will be staying with me tonight…"

So why were _her_ eyes feeling all hot, now?

"… Who knows, maybe we'll finish off _Practical Learning Applications_ together!"

The heat vanished as she looked at Twilight, and she snorted.

Twilight was _such_ an _egghead_! She could be the _definition_ of it, or something like that.

Not that there was anything wrong with being an egghead. No. Not when it meant Twilight learned all those freaky sort of spells that nopony else knew, but always managed to get them out of trouble. Even if those things got them _into_ trouble, too…

"… Well, anyway, I think I'd best be off, now…"

Besides, _Dash_ was a bit of an egghead herself, so being an egghead didn't mean a pony couldn't be _cool_. If reading the adventures of another of the most _awesome_ pegasi ever to exist made her an egghead, anyway.

Dash smirked, and then it disappeared as she tapped her hoof against her chin. Wasn't there supposed to be another Daring Do book out soon?

"… Reckon I better get goin' too, girls. 'S'much as I've liked chattin' today, those apples aren't gonna' buck themselves."

"Yes… I suppose we _have_ been sitting around for a while now…"

There'd been something in the paper about it last week, if she remembered it right.

A full-page picture of Daring with her eyes narrowed and he teeth clenched so hard they should have been cracking, pumping her wings hard while her hooves clutched this weird medallion thing… Yeah, it hadn't _really_ explained _what_ it was that Daring was adventuring for this time. But considering there was an _enormous_ dragon behind her, shooting a massive column of fire right for her, it _had_ to be important!

"… Ta-tah, girls!"

"Bye!"

"Um… Rainbow? …"

Knowing how much they packed into a Daring Do book, that wouldn't be the end of it, either. Maybe they would _finally_ let Herpy reunite with that long lost sister—

"_Rainbow_."

"Huh?"

Dash looked to her left and found herself locking eyes with Fluttershy, who immediately tucked her head down. She kept those big, green eyes locked on Rainbow, though.

"I'm sorry, Rainbow," she mumbled through a fading smile, "but I was just wondering if you were… um… still coming over tonight?"

Dash raised an eyebrow. Oh… _that_.

That was _tonight_?

"I mean, If you're busy at all—"

"Whoa, 'Shy, relax," she said, laying a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder and giving her a soft smile. It was _Fluttershy_. She was allowed to do that. Especially when it teased one back out of her. "I'll be there. And even if I _was_ busy, I'd make time for you. You know that."

Fluttershy looked straight at Dash, sighing as her smile spread further. "You're right, Dash. Thank you."

"Ah, don't worry about it," she said, shaking her head a little before her smirk made a triumphant return. "Besides, you're helping me out this afternoon, remember?"

Now Dash was sure she could see 'Shy's pearly little teeth. "Oh, _yes_! I remember." Her wide smile shrank back to its usual size, and she looked away for just a moment. "I'm sure your tricks will be _amazing_ today, Rainbow…"

Dash stood up just a little bit taller, her smirk deepening.

"And when _haven't_ my stunts been amazing?"

Fluttershy let out one of her light, soft-as-an-old-cumulus chuckles, and then looked away to the door. "Um… well, I'd better get going too, Rainbow. Angel's probably getting antsy…"

"All right, I'll see you later, then."

Fluttershy gave her one last, wide smile and trotted outside with Pinkie right behind her.

Leaving the way clear for the Dash!

She rolled her neck, teasing out and stretching away all the tightness that came with sitting on her flank without napping, before levelling her stare at the cloud. A little wisp of it flailed in the light breeze, taunting and beckoning her.

She smirked, taking a step forward.

"Dash?"

Rainbow shuddered as a hoof landed on her side. "What, Rarity?"

The hoof jumped a little on her side, and she heard it clop to the floor. Dash turned around.

And found herself looking right into Rarity's big, shiny eyes, staring at her with little pools shimmering at the bottom of them.

"Rainbow… _darling_… I-I _have_ to apologise for earlier…"

She fought the groan back into her throat. How…

How were her friends so _good_ at those! Those big, stupid, puppy-dog eyes! She'd already had enough of those this week to _kill_ somepony who wasn't as tough as her. There were the ones Twilight had given her when Spike had woken up with a bad head-cold and asked her to fetch Nurse Redheart—cause she was the only pony _fast_ enough! Plus there were the ones Pinkie'd let loose on her after that special cake she'd baked turned out to have too much lemon juice in it. And she didn't even want to _begin_ to think about _Fluttershy's_ when they'd found one of her rabbits out in the Everfree with a sprained ankle… Hay, even _AJ_ could do them when her sister was hurt!

And there was that long, lingering look that _Tank_ had given her when his magical propeller ran out of energy… poor little guy…

Wait. Why was she even _thinking_ about this?

"What I was saying was _completely_ unacceptable!"

Dash looked at Rarity. Maybe it was those little streaks of black snaking their way down her cheeks.

"Look, Rarity…" she began, her words coming out thick.

"No, I _mean_ it, Dash!" screeched Rarity, flinging her hoof out and her mane back. Her lips trembled for a moment. "I had _no_ business prying into your love life like that. That was for _you_ to talk about when _you_ felt comfortable…"

Rarity kept those… _eyes_ on her for a few more seconds, before she finally looked away, her head slumping down. "And I _knew_ that…" she croaked. Dash could see her mouth wobbling again.

Sheesh! Rarity was right to call herself a drama queen!

"Rarity, I'm _not_ mad," was how it came out.

Instantly, Rarity snapped back to her, those eyes more wide than wet now. "You're not?"

Dash grinned. "Nope. Well, not about that, anyway." She looked back out the door. Still there. Her grin grew. "There's a cloud out there with my name on it _still_ waiting for me."

Rarity let out a wet little chuckle. "Well, quite…" A smile sprouted on her lips, and made it almost all the way across them before it vanished under a sigh. "I suppose I just got caught up in the idea of everypony having somepony to call their own…" Her head slumped.

Dash scoffed. "Remember who you're talking to here, Rarity." She stepped forward and draped a foreleg around Rarity's leg. "I've got the five best friends in the world. Why would I _need_ a special somepony?"

Rarity stared at her for a _long_ time. Long enough for that itch to tingle at her primaries, anyway. But she kept her hoof around Rarity and grinned at her. Slowly, a little one of Rarity's squirmed and wriggled out in return.

"That's… that's rather _sweet_ of you, Rainbow…"

Dash's grin creased into a smirk. "Eh, you guys must be rubbing off on me…"

Rarity chuckled, a little stronger this time, and her smile stayed put. "Thank you, Dash…" She cocked her head. "No hard feelings?"

"Sure!" Dash leaned in even closer. "As long as I can go fly, now."

And _there_ was that high _Rarity_ laugh she'd been waiting for, complete with a smirk of her own. "Deal."

"Deal," Dash replied, taking back her hoof and walking towards the door.

"Goodbye, Rainbow!" called Rarity, her voice light again.

"Bye, Rarity," she called back, before finally feeling the warmth of the sun on her fur again. Head down, wing fluttering a little at her sides, she took in a deep breath of the sweet, fresh _air_, and looked up…

… At a totally clear sky.


	3. Chapter 3

Dash sighed through a smile as she eased herself back along the branch, the little notches and grains gently teasing at all the little tensions in her back. Her wings fluttered a little as the occasional big one found a sweet spot and sent tingles racing through her spine. Once her head found that familiar little bowl on the side of the trunk, she let her eyes close softly.

Her smile deepened. _This_, no matter what Rarity said about her _darling_ spa—and how comfortable those weird chairs that place had were, come to think of it—was _the_ way to relax. The high sun keeping her nice and toasty, the quiet puffs of wind ruffling through her mane and unwinding all the knots on her forehead, the sweet scent of apples filling her lungs?

"_Yeah…_" she sighed, folding her fore hooves over her chest and peering up through the branches. What _better_ way was there for an _awesome_ pegasus to spend their afternoon?

Through the leaves and the twigs, the big, blue, _completely-clear-with-nopony-in-it-to-get-in-the-way_ sky answered for her. Dash scowled, a third sigh rushing out of her nostrils and her shoulders slumping. She turned her head away and closed her eyes.

It wasn't that talk. No. Not even with Rarity giving her those… _eyes_. And that little wobble in her voice. And those—

Dash shook her head.

Besides, it _had_ been nice to remember that big fruit-growers' competition last week, even if it meant AJ spending about half an hour reminding them all _who_ the _greatest_ apples in Equestria were grown by. Dash snorted, but she kept smirking. And they said _she_ was full of herself! Plus, now she knew just _when_ she had to book time off the weather patrol for next week's trip to Pinkie's old farm for her Ma's fiftieth. Hay, she was even going to see the _Wonderbolts_ in a couple of weeks.

Dash grinned, but held back on the squeal this time; that sort of sound could carry out here. Still, _any_ morning where she found _that_ out _had_ to be a good one.

No. It _hadn't_ been the talk. Although, maybe if they hadn't been talking about all that mushy stuff, she wouldn't have ploughed her way through all those sweets and that… _ugh._

_Now_ Rainbow frowned, and she bit at her lip.

Ordinary flying on a full stomach? Nothing to it. Hay, even the Wingmare's Weave she'd wanted to pull off would have been a _cinch_. But with a totally empty sky, the only tricks that still sent her blood pumping were high speed ones. And flying right up where the cold stung at her eyes and summoned _water and not tears_ to do battle against it, pumping her wings so that the ground was nothing more than a blur far below, before swooping around in a massive arc and feeling the air press against her wings, her insides churning and squirming around…

Dash cringed, her cheeks puffing up for just a second.

_Yeah…_

Nothing a little nap couldn't fix, though. Besides, she was probably due for one, anyway; she had been up for a whole _seven hours_, now.

Her smile returned and made itself much more comfortable this time. She closed her eyes.

Besides, if she timed this right…

She nestled closer to the trunk, her breaths deepening.

… by the time she woke up…

One hoof fell off her middle, and she left it dangling by her side.

… she'd be _ready_…

* * *

"Rainbow!"

Dash jolted, her eyes shooting open and her wings flaring. Then she grimaced, and she raised a hoof over her eyes as they creaked nearly all the way closed again.

That couldn't have been more than a minute. Right?

"Rainbow Dash?"

She flipped over, and eyed the orange mare standing below. Applejack stared back, her eyes bright and perched above a little smile.

"Yeah, Appleja…" was as far as she got before her words dissolved into a yawn, and she had to raise a hoof to her mouth. Her gaping mouth titled her head back, and her brows furrowed as her eyes raked the sky.

Hadn't the sun been right above her when she got here?

"Sorry 'f'I'm interruptin' your busy day, Rainbow."

Dash's eyes snapped back to AJ and narrowed at her. "Hey!"

She leapt off the branch and flared her wings, landing with a heavy thud before walking over to Applejack. From here, she could see AJ's smile had curled into a smirk.

Her eyes narrowed just a little further. "This was supposed to be my day off, Applejack. Or don't you know what those are?" She grinned.

Applejack did the same, before letting out a chuckle that faded into a smile. Then AJ's lips wriggled between her teeth, and she looked away.

Dash raised an eyebrow. "Applejack?"

Before she could take more than a step, Applejack sighed and hung her head. "Dash… I've… I've been meanin' t'ask you somethin' for a while, now…"

Dash had to hold back a gasp as AJ turned to look at her again, and she felt something cold jab at her. Her eyes…

_No_. She shook her head. She was _not_ going through this again!

"AJ…"

"No, Dash," she said, raising a hoof, her eyes clearing a little. Enough for Dash to make sure of that, anyway. "I _need_ to know… and what we were talkin' 'bout at Rarity's made me remember that…"

Dash had a sudden vision of big, wet blue eyes, wobbling at her—

Nope. Not going there.

"Dash?"

Her face softened, and she looked up from her scowl to find AJ staring right at her, something that _looked_ like a smile stretching across her muzzle. At least, she _hoped that's_ what it was. "Yeah?"

AJ bit her lip again. "Dash… what you said 'bout not wantin' a special somepony… it hasn' got anythin' to do with what happened in Canterlot, has it?"

Dash stared at her. "What? You mean Soarin' hasn't told you that?"

"Well…" AJ tapped her chin with a hoof, just starting to smile. "He said you were kinda' angry with 'im, and you were kinda' quiet the _whole_ way back t'Ponyville." That smile creased into a smirk. "And then _I_ saw you storm back t'yer place…"

"Okay, I get it." Dash aimed her glare right at that smug smirk of AJ's before it softened under AJ's… _smugness_. She sighed. "Yeah, I guess I did get kind of angry with him, you see…"

* * *

_Dash dragged her hoof through her mane, pulling the lingering, sweaty strands away from her eyes before they could sting. Not that they'd bother her too much. No. Not when she'd already fought off a huge swarm of changelings with her friends, helped put back together some of the tents and marquees the wedding was using, _and_ pulled off a Sonic Rainboom right over the castle with barely a hoofball-field's worth of dive._

_And without even a scratch on her, if the mirror wasn't lying. She smirked at her reflection._

_Yep. All in a day's work for the most _awesome_ pegasus in Equestria_—

_Ah, who was she kidding. Today could _easily_ top her list of 'Best Days Ever', and it was up against some stiff competition. Even so, those others would have to beat the fact that she'd got to spend the _whole evening_ hanging out with and talking to _the_ most awesome pegasi in the world!_

_A little squeal eased itself through her grin, but she was too busy clopping her hooves to care. She'd got to talk to Fleetfoot about her technique for maintaining high speed through curves_—_all in the shoulder, according to her, and Dash didn't have _any_ reason to doubt her! She'd spoken to Storm Surge about where he'd started out_—_the Hoofington _weather patrol_! And, best of all, she'd been able to ask Spitfire about those flames that the Wonderbolts _always_ had coming from their tails_—_something about food from Maredras…?!_

_She pumped the air with a hoof, her grin squeezing her eyes shut._

_Aw, _yeah!_ Could this day _get_ any more awesome?_

"_Rainbow Dash?"_

_She spun around and instantly felt her eyes widen. Right in front of her, lit up by the pale moonlight, stood a stallion. A tall, light blue stallion, with a dark blue mane swept back like he'd just flown in through a gale, looking more than a little out of place in a shiny blue suit. He gazed at her with soft green eyes, an awkward little smile on his lips._

"_Soarin'?"_

_Yes. Yes it _could_ get more awesome!_

_His smile flickered for a moment, giving her a glimpse of perfect white teeth. "Hey, Rainbow Dash…" He bit his lip, taking a step forward. "I need to ask you something…"_

_Dash felt her jaw swing open. That was fine, though. This was _Soarin'_! Still, it didn't hurt for her to close it, but she could keep her eyes the size of dinner-plates._

"_I know this might be a bit of a surprise to you…" he continued, getting ever closer._

_Rainbow's wings fluttered, and so did her chest. A grin slowly began to stretch itself across her muzzle. Could… could he be_—

_No. He was a _Wonderbolt_. He wasn't going to be asking her for _tips_!_

_But still, maybe…_

_She gasped. A little. Maybe it _could_ be…_

"_Or maybe not, actually." He chuckled, flashing her a grin. "After all, this isn't the first time we've met…"_

Yes_! Yes it was!_

_It _had_ to be!_

_She could see it now…_

"_I don't know _what_ the rest of the 'Bolts are gonna' think when they find out…"_

_She would stride confidently down the cloud steps, her eyes focused on the light at the end the poured in through the opening. The opening that led to the greatest honour a flier could receive!_

_She would step out the hole, and the crowd would _roar_ for her. Ponies would hold up banners declaring her to be the greatest ever, or that they _knew_ she'd make it. Foals would have their manes dyed so they could be just like their _hero_. Her parents would be there, too; Mom'd be bawling her eyes out with a hoof over her mouth, while Dad would be leading the applause with one tear streaking down his muzzle._

"… _Actually, I don't think Spitfire'll mind all that much," he said, shaking his head with a chuckle. "Might get rid of some rumours…"_

_And there, in the stand right above her entrance, would be all her friends. Pinkie's squeaky yells would cut through everypony else's, as she bounced around like she'd downed another three bags of sugar. AJ and Twilight would both be trying to keep up_—_Twi taking the odd glance at _Cheering for Eggheads_, or something, and AJ hurling her hat almost to the rim of the Cloudiseum. And in the corner, Rarity and Fluttershy'd be leaning against each other, both smiling so hard that it wouldn't matter if they were crying._

_She'd give them a wave, and a grin so wide it'd probably give a less-tough pegasus jaw cramp, before carrying on towards… _them_._

"_So… Dash?" He stood right in front of her now, his head cocked a little._

_He'd be there in the Cloudiseum, too. So would _all_ the Wonderbolts. Him, and Rapidfire and Fleetfoot and Storm Surge and Raindrop Flare and Whirlwind and Lightning Flash and Banana Milkshake. Well, the _A Team_ would be there; the other Wonderbolts would probably be off someplace else doing their _showstopper_, or getting the training grounds ready._

_And they'd all be smiling at her as she walked between the rows of them. Maybe Milkshake'd even hold out a hoof for her to bump, and before she'd know it she'd be face-to-face with _the_ most _awesome_ pegasus in the stadium._

"_Yes?!" Okay she'd squealed a _little_ too high, there, but this was _so worth it_!_

_Spitfire._

_Dash'd grin, her wings fluttering a little at her side. Spitfire would smirk, and then she'd reach behind herself for something. That smirk would soften a little, and she'd hold the… _something_ out for Dash as the roars around them grew to their loudest._

"_Rainbow…"_

_A neatly folded, slightly shiny suit of dark blue, complete with little yellow lightning bolts, and a pair of goggles perched on top!_

"… _would you mind introducing me to that orange mare you came with?"_

_In an instant, Spitfire no longer stood in front of her. Instead, she was still staring at Soarin', who looked back with a goofy smile and his eyes shining a little in the moonlight._

"_What?" she grunted._

_Soarin' raised an eyebrow. She could feel the racing beat in her chest start to ebb away like a dying storm. "You know… the mare with the apple cutie-mark? And the hat?"_

"_Applejack?" All around her, the other Wonderbolts began to fade into the murky darkness._

_Soarin's smile eased itself wider, and he heaved a quiet sigh. "Yeah… I mean, I know it's weird that I didn't even know her name and I… I can't stop _thinking_ about her…"_

_The crowd slowly started to disappear, too. All those banners and stamping hooves and rainbow manes. And foals with their eyes twinkling in that same way _hers_ had when _she's_ seen the Wonderbolts for the first time. And her parents, still crying and whooping and _cheering her on_._

_All gone._

_Poofed back into the darkness of her head._

"_I guess it kinda' started back at the Gala. You remember that pie you saved? Well, she's the one who sold it to me. Thing is, though, when I rock up in my flight-suit, ponies usually bend over backwards when I wanna' buy something. They're all 'Oh _yes_, Mister Soarin'' and 'Right away, Mister Soarin'' and 'Can I shine your hooves, Mister Soarin''." He shook his head, before that dreamy smile stretched even further. "But _Applejack_… she just gave me the sweetest little smile, and then I looked into her eyes, and _oh…_ I didn't know it at the time_—_probably too busy eating that _awesome_ pie she'd baked_—_but when I thought about her after the gala, her eyes just seemed so… _pretty_. Not, like, supermodel pretty, or the kind of pretty that makes you stop and stare, but a kind of… nice, quiet pretty… Like… like I'm lying on a low cloud out in the middle of nowhere, just watching a little stream wind through a big, open field of flowers with the sunset turning everything gold…" He titled his head back, eyes softly closing._

_All of her friends started to fade away, now._

_Pinkie was first to go, bouncing right into the darkness without her smile even flickering once. Applejack followed her out, grabbing to hat just as she slipped away, and then Twilight went as she took one last look at her hooves. Finally, Rarity and Fluttershy faded together, never once looking away from her, and not letting their eyes dry…_

"_And then when I heard she was coming here… I… I just _had_ to meet her! So I kind of kept my eyes open and tried to find a moment when she was alone so I could talk to her, but she's just so… so _friendly_, you know? Every time I've seen her tonight, she's always been talking to somepony like they've known each other for life, or playing around with… well, now I guess she's her little sister… or she's been making sure everypony's enjoyed her cooking. Celestia knows, _I_ have!"_

_His smile stretched into a grimace, and he looked away for a second. "But… but every time I tried to colt-up and just walk in there to ask her… I-I get this _knot_ in my gut… I mean, she's _amazing_… She's _saved Equestria_!"_

_Her own huge grin finally slipped away. She let out a big sigh, her wings hanging limp at her sides. The heat that she'd felt in her eyes disappeared, fading under the aches in her cheeks…_

"_So… I was wondering if you could help me out here, Dash?"_

_She kept trying to bore through the floor with her eyes._

"_Dash?"_

_Rainbow's head jerked up, looking right at Soarin' and that stupid, goofy smile of his. She forced a small one of her own out. "Sure…"_

* * *

"… and that's when I told him that _you'd_ been wanting to see him. After that, it wasn't hard to get both of you to that fountain," Dash finished, shrugging. And stopping her mind before it could go over them going all _mushy_ over each other in the moonlight.

A shiver rippled up her back. Actually, it wasn't _that_ bad, what those two did. Still, she could have done without seeing AJ practically _melt_ against him after their_ third word_ to each other…

"So…" Dash found Applejack staring at her, eyebrows shoved right up to her mane. "… You thought'e was askin' you to join the Wonderbolts? Hoo-_eee_…" She shook her head, a smirk curling its way out. "That must'a been all _kinds_ of awkward when he found out."

Dash smirked. "Yeah… I told him last time he was here." She snorted.

Applejack chuckled back. "I was wondrin' why'e was all torn up, that day."

It was Rainbow's turn to raise a brow. "You mean he didn't tell you _that,_ either?"

Applejack hummed, her lips twisting. "Not really. I mean, when I found 'im, he looked kinda' shook up 'bout somethin', so I asked him if anythin' was wrong… and I believed him when he said it was nothin'."

Dash grinned. "Sounds about right. You should've heard him when he was talking to me, though…" Her grin stretched wider, and a chuckle escaped. "I swear, I thought I was talking to Fluttershy's cousin, or something."

Although… it _had_ been worth sitting through all those apologies to hear that the _Wonderbolts_ were keeping their eyes on her!

Aw, _yeah_!_ Yeah_!

She smirked, looking across at AJ, who turned away and bit her lip. Dash took a step closer, and saw her friend's eyes growing wet with— _oh no_.

She walked right over to AJ. This wasn't happening _now_.

"Applejack?" She _meant_ that wobble to be in her voice. Really.

AJ sniffed, and brought those big, shiny eyes around to look at Dash. That shiver came back. "I…I-"

"Look, AJ," she said, braving those… _eyes_ and trotting even closer to Applejack, "I really meant it when I said it was nothing to do with Soarin'." She grinned. "_Seriously_. I'm happy for you and the big lug."

AJ chuckled, and her eyes cleared again. "It's not that, Dash, it's just…" She sighed. "It's just I never realised Soarin' felt that way about me for _that_ long…"

_Ugh…_

Dash stopped herself from _actually_ groaning, but rolled her eyes and threw her head back anyway. What was _with_ her friends, today?

And what was with the sun being _that_ far across the sky?

She squinted at the sky, biting at her lip. Maybe she'd been asleep for a _little_ more than a minute.

Dash looked back at AJ, who still stared into nothing, smiling that same goofy smile she was probably seeing in her head. "Sure you're all right, AJ?"

Applejack jumped, her eyes landing on Dash. "Yeah, I'm fine now, Dash." They narrowed as she smirked. "Why? Am I interruptin' one o'your super-important naps, again?"

Dash grinned back, then she flared her wings and pumped _hard_.

In moments, the greens and reds of the trees around her fell away into a clear light blue. She took in a deep, chilly breath, which sent a familiar tingle racing away from her chest and down to the tips of her wings.

Down below, she could see AJ scrambling around for her hat, that smirk wiped off her face.

And in a field a little closer to town, she spied a familiar yellow dot waiting as patiently as always for her…


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey, 'Shy!" Dash called out, landing just as Fluttershy squeaked and stood bolt upright. Fluttershy slowly turned around, and Dash couldn't help but smile a little wider as she caught sight of 'Shy's.

"Hello, Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy said, those big blue eyes twinkling and making Dash grin even harder.

Until she noticed that part of one still hid behind her mane.

Dash sighed, her smile collapsing so fast she felt a lip snag between her teeth. "Hey, sorry I'm late, Fluttershy." Something felt tight and awkward in her chest. Probably just a build-up of flying energy. She _hoped_. "I got kinda' caught up talking to AJ…" she finished, looking over at the maze of apple trees.

"Oh, that's all right, Rainbow," Fluttershy said in that pillow-soft whisper that always sounded so _right_. Like it was a little pat on the back all on its own. No wonder Dash's smile had come right back. After all, it was _Fluttershy_; that was just what she did.

"In fact…" Fluttershy took a step back. "If you hadn't been late, I wouldn't have been able to catch up with one of my old friends!"

Fluttershy pointed a fore-hoof out to the side, out to a little blob of brown sticking out of a slightly bigger blob of brown. Except that the first blob had two beady little black eyes that Dash could only just see. And two tiny pink paws that clung to the rim of its dirt mound. And a thin nose, that twitched and shuffled about in that way that was just a _little_ too _oochie-coo_ for those shudders to not ripple down her back.

No wonder it was one of 'Shy's friends.

Still, it was _Shy's friend_. Those ripples could have _earthquakes_ and they wouldn't matter.

"Moleville here hurt one of his paws last year when he tried to tunnel up into my living room."

Dash stared at her. "He did _what_?"

Fluttershy's eyes shot wide. Or as wide as they ever went when a dragon wasn't nearby. "Oh! He didn't mean it," she said, patting his head, and he eased into her hoof with a big smile on his face. "He just lost his way after looking for something to eat. So I took him in and made sure that he had somewhere warm and cosy to stay while he healed." Her gentle little smile spread out again.

And stayed there until the little guy started chirping.

"Oh, what's that?" 'Shy titled her head.

More chirping. That smile of hers was back in a moment.

"Oh, of _course_ you can help me out when I'm gardening, Moleville. But only if you _really_ want to, okay?"

The little guy nodded, before he disappeared back into the mound, a few flecks of dirt spraying out behind him.

Fluttershy kept her eyes locked on the hole for a few moments, and Dash was sure she heard a little sigh whisper out of her friend's nostrils. She _definitely_ saw the little heave of her shoulders, anyway.

And the much bigger one a few moments later, after which Dash could feel the weight of those soft eyes on her.

At least they weren't wet this time. Thankfully. She didn't know how she'd kept _breathing_ after the last time she'd seen… _those_.

"Sorry, Rainbow… I-I know you've already missed flying this morning…" Fluttershy's head slipped further and further down with each word, a little more hiding behind her mane, too.

"Eh, don't worry about it, Fluttershy." That perked her right back up, _and_ pulled back the covers. Dash grinned. "Guess I'll just have to fly _even_ faster, now."

Fluttershy let out one of her light little giggles, while Dash took a moment to _chuckle and definitely not giggle_.

All right, _maybe_ it was kind of like a… _giggle_. A _little_. But she was with Fluttershy; that made it okay.

Dash smirked. "Ready to cheer?"

She needed only a glimpse of Fluttershy's smile and nod for it to _finally_ happen. In the blink of an eye, she inched her fore-hooves ever so _slightly_ further apart, levelled her brows, flared her wings to their fullest extent, tensed her legs…

And _took off_.

With one beat of her wings, she was already high enough that she could only _just_ hear Fluttershy saying, "Oh _yes_, Dash!"

With another, a smirk dragged all the way across her muzzle farther than it had all day. Or maybe it was just the wind forcing it out?

Or maybe it was the great _rush_ of pure _awesomeness_ and_ energy_ she could feel surging through her.

Yeah, it was probably that.

Dash narrowed her eyes, and she raised her fore-hooves above her head. Their _proper_ position for _proper_ stunt flying.

With every beat of her wings she could feel the wind rush through her coat ever more quickly. The tension squeezing across her forehead? The tightness yanking her shoulders together? Those little niggles and grumbles that just built and built and _built_ across the last week, like Derpy accidentally setting off a lightning fork into her tail even if she would never actually mean to do it and she'd apologised for _hours_ after it, or the post-office forgetting about her subscription to _Wonderbolts Weekly_, or the weather patrol putting her on for two three-hour shifts _back-to-back _ yesterday, or the Cakes' foals choosing _her_ tail to chew on?

All gone.

Lost to the blur of the field and houses below, and the whistle of the wind through her mane, and the thundering of her own heart.

Aw, _YEAH_! She'd _needed_ this!

Dash finally reached her target, where the chill tingled through her wings even though they were like a blur by her sides, and only the _best_ fliers could stay up with the thin air. She smirked.

And pushed her wings behind her, angling them so they almost flattened against their sides on their own. She could feel her primaries occasionally whip against her side, more and more as she dove and picked up speed like Tank inhaled lettuce.

She somehow found the time to raise an eyebrow. Bad example.

Either way, the ground rushed up towards her, even with the cold wind stinging at her eyes. She paid that no mind; she _lived_ for this.

Just a little further…

The dark green lines around the edges of the field sprang and branched out into hedges.

A _little_ more…

Fluttershy stood out clear as a rainbow across a clear sky, her eyes huge and staring and her smile somehow _even wider_. Hay, she was _so_ excited that her wings had popped up and she was even leaning _forwards_!

Maybe…

She could suddenly see every blade of grass a few feet from her hooves, looming and threatening like the traps from a Daring Do book.

_Now!_

She threw her wings out, grimacing as the full brunt of the thicker air whacked against them and they strained so hard she _almost_ let out a groan. But she didn't. Instead, she arched her back and tilted her wings back just a _tad_, and watched with an ever-growing smirk as the greens suddenly gave way to clear, pure blue.

And then she felt the little tickle against her hooves that told her she'd pulled up at _just_ the _perfect_ moment.

For a tiny moment, she could hear Fluttershy cheering with a whole _chorus_ of those soft little _yays_ that just never got any _louder_ no matter how hard she tried. And _tried_ she _did_. Dash could actually hear them while _flying_, now, so that counted as progress, she guessed. Tiny progress, definitely, but progress.

And at least 'Shy was actually down there.

Dash smirked and levelled off into a smoother climb. Besides, if this all went well, she wouldn't need _Fluttershy_ to be cheering and making herself all uncomfortable and working herself up every other month or so and making Dash feel squirmy enough inside to have to _hug_ her while she went all… _ugh_, _teary-eyed_ because she thought she wasn't a good enough support when she_ was_—she _so _was, and she'd kick the flank of anypony who said otherwise—and—

Why was she doing that again?

That thinking about _that_?

Dash scowled, and she tilted the very tips of her wings so that the world whirled between green and blue.

As she was thinking, if all of this went well… she'd have a _real_ cheering section. In a _real stadium_!

_Yeah_.

She threw her hooves right, arching her back again. Fighting to keep her eyes open and her mouth closed, she focussed on keeping herself as tight as she could as every force slammed into her. Wind resistance… centrifugal… some others that Twilight told her about once…

Eh, those didn't matter; the world was spinning too quick for that.

She gritted her teeth, staring at the flash of colour she knew as her own tail, while the world spun around above and below in the corners of her eyes. Harder and harder she pumped her wings, until finally she forced one out.

And shot away from her little circle in the sky, smirking all the while before pulling to a series of _routine_ loop-the-loops. So she could catch her breath. The little she need to, anyway.

She let herself take a quick look back at her _perfect_ Tornado Twist, just as the last of her rainbow flare faded.

Best start to a routine _ever_!

Her cheering section'd _definitely_ go wild for _that_. Little foals would be shouting her name and saying she was the greatest and declaring that they wanted to be just like her when they grew up! Her fellow 'Bolts'd be giving her those little nods and smirks that _everypony_ knew meant a job well done. The stadium would be _filled_ with ponies, all waving banners with every colour on them, or letting off party-poppers and streamers, or standing far below, talking to Pinkie!

Wait…

Dash cocked a brow, and looked down again.

Sure enough, there was 'Shy, her head darting about as Pinkie bounced all around her.

Eyes still glued to the pink blur that could pop up at any time and destroy _all_ the tension of a Daring Do climax, Dash floated back down to her friends. After all, Pinkie wasn't supposed to be there…

She heard Pinkie's faint chirp. "Really?"

Sure, she would have _liked_ it if Pinkie showed up to her practicing. Hay, she'd have liked it if _any_ of her friends would come and cheer for her as she _cheated death_ and _forced the wind to do her bidding_. _Yeah!_

"Oh, yes, Pinkie. It's just that, um… Rainbow…"

And if Pinkie showed up, she'd probably bring her party cannons and her streamer launchers and all _sorts_ of things that all just seemed to make everything at her parties _better_. And they were already completely, one-hundred percent _awesome_ to begin with.

"So nothing's going on at all?"

But wasn't Pinkie supposed to be planning _another_ party? For tomorrow?

"Hey, Pinkie!" Dash called out as she landed.

"Hi, Dashie!" Pinkie chirped.

And Fluttershy jolted again, crouching behind her mane.

Dash's brows creased, and she aimed them at Pinkie. "What's up?"

Pinkie gave her one of those huge, face-splitting grins that chased off the hardness that had been in her voice. "Oh, nothing's up, Dashie. Well, except for you, but you've come all the way down here now!" She let out one of her little snorty giggles, and Dash couldn't help but smile.

"I just wanted to ask Fluttershy about something I saw earlier when we were all at Rarity's."

"Ah-huh," Dash grunted, taking a look at Fluttershy. She was back out from behind her mane, now, but her smile _still_ looked kind of weak.

"I mean, you were just _totally_ ignoring everything Rarity and AJ were saying when they talked about their colt-friends. It was kinda' funny, really. They were both like _I love him so much_ and _he's so lovely_ and _he completes me_, and you were just sitting there in your own little world—guess it must be kinda' like the world I go into when I plan my parties but with rainbows instead of streamers and where you can just think about flying or the Wonderbolts—and then you said you never wanted a special somepony!

"But then I saw you and Fluttershy being all secretive and you trying not to look at her when you were at the table, and then you said something about meeting up together tonight!"

Pinkie may have grinned, but Dash felt her hackles rise. "And there's something wrong with that?"

"Nope! Nothing at all!" Dash could _not_ stop her frown from melting under _another_ Pinkie grin. "It's like Fluttershy told me; you've known each other since you were both teeny-tiny, little Splashy-Dashie and Flutter-Wutters! Well, she didn't use _those_ names, since I just made them up, but it still means the same!"

Pinkie leapt over to Dash's side, wrapped a hoof around her middle, and squeezed all the air right out of her. "This is just something that you and Fluttershy like to do together. Like when you go pranking with me, right Dashie?"

Breathing deeply, but not_ too_ deeply, Dash looked at Pinkie. At her sugary-sweet smile, and the mane that still bounced along with her, and the bright blue eyes that she could see _twinkling_.

Dash had to hold back a sigh. This was the pony who'd thrown the biggest party _ever_ last week, just 'cause she felt like celebrating the fact that she had such good friends by her sides. The pony who was always there with cupcakes and muffins and sweets, all out of the goodness of her hear—

Yeesh! When did she get so cheesy!

Pinkie shifted a little at her side, _hugging_ her even tighter, and Dash felt her guts shrivel and writhe.

The same moment she'd thought something _not cool_ about one of her best friends forever that she'd ever-ever had. _That's_ when.

She managed a smile. "Yep."

"Actually, Pinkie…" They both looked over at Fluttershy. _Her_ smile was the same neat little one as always. "I don't mind you joining us tonight. Um…" She looked away for a second, "but if Rainbow—"

"Nah, that's cool with me, Fluttershy." Dash grew her smile into a full-on grin.

Pinkie took away her hoof, and she tapped it against her chin. Then she giggled, shaking her head. "I don't think I can make it tonight, really. I'm hosting one of my _special_ parties."

The moment Pinkie shifted her shoulders, and made _that_ little jerk of her head, Dash couldn't stop her grin from flattening into a smirk. After all, _everypony_ knew what one of Pinkie's _special_ parties were.

So she hardly batted an eye as she noticed 'Shy curl away behind her mane again, her eyes fixed on the ground and her cheeks _glowing_ pink.

"… Oh, did I tell you guys about _last_ night's?! …"

Fluttershy shifted a little on her hooves again, and Dash was _sure_ she heard that tiny little squeak.

The same one she'd heard _all_ those… well, not _that_ many years ago, really, but it was back at Flight Camp anyhow.

"… Caramel and Lucky _both_ came along for some fun, this time…"

There she'd been, laying down on the floor looking up the latest _epic_ routine that the Wonderbolts had shown off in Hoofington, and working out just how _she_ was going to do it, when Fluttershy just _burst_ into her room.

"… And then I got out my secret stash of super-squirty cream and caramel—well, why wouldn't I, Caramel _himself_ was there! …"

And Fluttershy _never_ burst into _anywhere_ before. Of course. _Fluttershy_. So she'd looked up from her magazine, and that was when she'd seen just how… _heavily_ 'Shy was breathing. If she'd been panting any harder she might have blown the window out the cloud frame. That's what it'd felt like, anyway. And her cheeks had gone _bright_ red, and she'd looked all over the room with those big, wide eyes.

That was when she'd gotten visions of those… those dumb _colts_, crowding around her and calling her Clutzershy and just being… _argh_…

"… So we all went upstairs to my _party palace_…"

But she didn't even get chance to _ask_ Fluttershy what'd happened before she just shot under her comforter and wrapped it completely around herself. _Completely_. Like it was a cocoon, or something. And then every time she'd tried to peel back the cover—and been _really_ gentle with it—or just even tried to _talk_ to Fluttershy, all she'd get in return was a little tremble, or a whimper, and she'd curl herself up even tighter.

Or she'd get a little sniffle.

Dash shivered in the present. Fluttershy… _crying_…

"… Even I don't know how they _both_ did that at the same time…"

She shuddered again.

So… she'd stood next to her bed for what felt like _forever_, just watching 'Shy as she trembled under the covers, feeling like that one time she'd tried to fly through a hail cloud and come under fire from _thousands_ of these little ice shards.

"… Hay, I didn't even know ponies _could_ bend like that! …"

And just as her cheeks'd started to ache from all the awkward grimacing, and her eyes had started to get a little warm for _some reason_, her door'd opened again, and this skinny little green filly let herself in.

But Dash hadn't minded; it was Minty Fresh. Fluttershy's room-mate.

"… But I guess I've said enough about _last_ night's fun…"

The two of them had gone back over to Fluttershy, only to find that she'd poked her head out from under the covers. With two dark tracks under her eyes…

"… Al_tho_-ough, this does explain why _you_ never came along too, Dashie…"

And then the next few seconds had kind of passed in a blur. Fluttershy said she was sorry for taking a peek at something, and Dash had had to look away 'cause her eyes started to _bubble up_ again, but this had left her staring at the magazine that Minty had poking out of her saddlebag.

The latest _Flying Fancier_. The one with Solar Flare on the cover, flying through a waterfall.

Dash had smirked.

"Right, Dashie?"

She'd heard her own room-mate _bouncing on her cloud_ through the night to pretty much the same magazine to know _exactly_ what was in it.

And that it'd not be something Fluttershy'd want to see.

"Dashie?"

Then before she'd known it, Fluttershy and Minty had both made up what hadn't actually been anything at all, and Dash had been able get back into _her_ magazine. With a smile on her face. Sure, her sheets had been a little clammy that night, and that hadn't been so hot, but it was worth it to see 'Shy smiling again as she went back to her room.

"Dashie?!"

"Huh?"

Dash shook her head and looked over at Pinkie, who immediately started giggling. "See? You've done it again, Dashie!"

Then Pinkie's grin vanished as her mouth shot open wider than Ghastly Gorge, and her gasp _echoed_ in Dash's ears. "It's _that_ late!" She didn't take her stare away from the sky, which Rainbow was sure was looking more orange and less blue by the second.

She could already feel her groan tickling at her throat.

"Sorry, girls, but I've got a party to get to!"

As Dash stared at the ground, she just noticed Pinkie bouncing away in the corner of her eye. She heaved her shoulders, finally letting out that groan.

Then a set of light-yellow hooves trotted to beside hers.

She looked up, her eyes landing on Fluttershy's, and _hers_ were very much facing the other way.

"Um… I-I'm _sorry_, Rainbow…"

Dash stared at her. "Eh, don't be, Fluttershy." _That_ made her turn those wide, staring eyes onto Rainbow. "It's just Pinkie being Pinkie… and it's _my_ fault for coming down here, anyway." She gave Fluttershy another of those… _soft_ smiles, and, sure enough, it brought another right out of her. "It's just…"

She looked up at the sky, and she couldn't hold back another sigh. Or stop her shoulders from sagging.

She could practically hear Fluttershy nibbling at her lip. "Uh… Rainbow, if you want to keep flying on your own—"

"Nah." Dash forced her smile back, aiming it at Fluttershy. "I'm still up for tonight."

Maybe it was the sun being so low, but Dash thought she could see something sparkle in Fluttershy's eyes. Or maybe it was her teeth; she was _definitely_ grinning hard enough to show those pearly-whites, now.

Dash countered it with a smirk and squared her shoulders. She looked up at the sky again. "But I gotta' go make sure Tank's okay, first."

She had just enough time to hear 'Shy gasp an, "Of course!" before it faded into the whoosh of the wind.


End file.
